THIS COMING MONDAY, Memorial Day in the U.S., I'm going to set off for five days and four nights of cycle touring, never getting more than a couple hours' drive from home.  My best intentions over the winter- ride three to five times every week starting in March- have failed to materialize, in the face of competing priorities and my ever-present tendency toward sloth.  So now I find myself staring at the calendar and thinking how much more I could have done; what will I do with the time remaining?

One distinct advantage of being retired is that I can finally take advantage of the fact that campsites are much, MUCH easier to find and book at short notice on weekdays than they are at the weekend.  Add to that the fact that it's still early in the family camping season- most school systems in this region don't let out for the summer for another couple weeks- and presto! I can throw together a nice five day tour with minimal planning and preparation.

As I did with my jaunt down to Florida in April, I've established a separate, "bounded" journal for it rather than continue to add to the preliminary materials of this one.  It's "over there" if you're interested.

UPDATE 6/2

If you've read the mini-tour journal you already know things didn't go as planned, and that I elected to cut it short due to heat, exhaustion, and so forth.  Based on that experience, and how it compares with the long tour in terms of physical challenges, rigor, probable weather conditions, and so forth, I'm now questioning whether it makes sense to actually undertake this tour.  I'll have to decide soon whether this is a risk I want to take.

On the one hand, the available objective evidence indicates that I may not be ready.  Am I about to bite off more than I can chew?  On the other hand, I still have a few weeks to get ready, both physically and mentally.  

Part of the getting ready process will be putting in as many more training miles as I can manage in the time remaining- something I neglected to do earlier when there were opportunities.  Another part will be a careful, critical review of the gear I plan to take, and ruthlessly eliminating anything and everything in the "nice to have" or "could be useful" categories.  I feel like I need to carve at least eight to ten pounds off my payload weight, in order to have a more reasonable chance of success.

Choosing NOT to go, to take a pass on the opportunity, would of course be a disappointment.  It would smack of defeatism without even making the attempt, "justified" (rationalized) by "showing good sense".  

Adventures, by their very nature, include a certain amount of risk and adversity.  You never know how you're going to fare when you set off; only the unfolding of events can tell you.  

I'll make the final decision once the immediate aftermath and sting of calling off the mini-tour before the planned end has had a chance to diminish.  Time brings new perspectives and, usually, better, more mature decision-making. Then we'll see.

Update 6/9

After licking my wounds for a few days following my ignominious tail-between-my-legs retreat from the Pennsylvania countryside, I set off on Tuesday 6/7 for a two-day, one-night "continuation" of the dress rehearsal.  My payload had been lightened by about eight pounds, the weather was cooler, and I had some electrolyte capsules as a supplement to what is in sports drinks.

It went well.  I covered 39 miles the first day, 41 the second, with a fair bit of climbing each day (although still nothing to compare to the day that  awaits me toward the end of Week 1, which includes three 1000+ footers in 48 miles).

That's the last opportunity I'll have for a multi-day trainer.  The rest of the time before I depart for Bend in two weeks will be spent doing day rides on my road bike, interwoven with the various appointments and other calendar interruptions that go with daily life.  I'll also disassemble and clean the bike, package up the gear, and make general preparations as needed.

It's almost Go Time!  If you've followed me this far, your patience is appreciated and I hope to reward it soon with actual reports from the road.

Heart

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